Machine for removing bark from logs.



G. s. WITHAM, JB. MACHINE FOR REMOVING BARK FROM LOGS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 13, 190B.

f f. 8.1. y. f,... WM I I l MM /M ...lmlfil Guss @.M HHHHI 7. mm ,11H1 am .um u .6% e MNHN m .www p71@ G. s. WITHAM, JR. MACHINE FOR REMOVING BARK FROM LOGS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 13, 1908.

Patented Deo. 29, 1908.

G. S. WITHAM, JR. MACHINE PoR RBMOVING BARK PROM LoGs.

YAPPLICATION FILED MAY13, 1908.

Patented Deo. 29, 1908. 5 SHEETS-SHEETS.

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G. S. WITHAM, JR. MACHINE PoR REMOVING BARR FROM LOGS'.

. APPLIOATION FILED MAY 1a, i908. 908,433. l Patented 1380.29, 1908.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

vGf. S. WITHAM, JR. MACHINE Fon RBMOVING BAM FROM LoGs.

. APPLICATION FILED MAY 13, 1908. l 908,433. Patented Dec.29, 1908.

6 SHEETS-SHEET -5.

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GEORGE S. WITHAM, JR., OF SANDY HILL, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO WILLIAM J.- GALLAGHER,

. OF SANDY HILL, NEW YORK.

MACHINE FOR RMOVING BAB/K FROM LOG-S. i

No. @08,1133 Specification of Application led May 13,

vLogs, of which the following is a'specication. My invention relates to that class of rossing machines in which the log is held in the path of a. vertically arranged rotary disk armed with knives which remove the bark from the log and in which the log is turned or rotated to present its entire bark-covered surface to the action of the knives. A ma` chine of this class is shown in my U. S. Patent No. 878,848 of February ll, 1908, and my present improvements relate especially to the kind ofrnachine shown in said patent. ln this class of machines some difliculty has been encountered in uniformly removing the sure device which holds down that end of the log which tends to rise while permitting it to freely rotate and which is withdrawn at the proper time to-pcrmit the log to be delivered to its carrier after the bark has been removed. .l have also provided the machine with what l call a' kicken which operates to move the barked log away from the path of the li'nives after the bark has been removed and to deliver it to the log carrier. rThis kicker is operated automatically in such manner that as soon as thepressure devices, which hold the log in the path of the knives, are withdrawn, the kicker operates to move the log onto its carrier; l have also provided the machine with devices whereby the automatic rotation of the log may be started and stopped at will, so that when logs containing knots, 'sea-ms or other irregularities are encountered, the automatic rotation of' the log may be stopped and the log turned or operated by hand until the knots or seams are removed. l have also improved the details oi conslruction of the. machine in thc manner hercii'iaftcr specified.

ln the; accompanying drawingsp-Figure l v.Patented Dec. 29, 1908.

is a front elevation of a rossing machine embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a detail view in perspective illustrating particularly the devices for holding down one end of the log while it is being barked. Fig. 3 is an `end elevation of the machine. Fig. 3 a is a detail view of the kicker mechanism. Fig. 4 is an end elevation of parts of the machine showing particularly the devices for raising and lowering the log rotating mechanism. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the machine. Fig. 6 is a perspective view on an enlarged scale showing particularly the log holding table and the lever mechanism connected therewith. Fig. 7 is a perspective View of the kicker andv its operating lever. Fig. 8 is a diagram of the operating rods and levers. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the stop or gage and its operating mechanism. Fig. l is a detail view in section showing certain parts of the operating mechanism. Fig. 11 is a detail view in. perspective of this mechanism.

The rotary'disk A, carrying the radial knives B, is mounted in a suitable housing or casing C. The shaft D of the disk is mounted in suitable bearings E and F at the front and -rear of the casing, and this shaft'may be operated by any suitable motor G. The conveyer or log .carrier Il is in the form of an endless chain armed Iwith spurs 7L, which passes over suitable guide pulleys l and carries the log from a pond, or othersouree of supply, X, to the rotary cutter and thence to any suitable receptacle. The chain passes around a sprocket pulley J on a shaft K carrying a friction pulley L adapted to engage a smaller friction pulley M on a parallel shaft N, which shaft is mounted in bearings N, N2, in the manner illustrated in Fig. 5. The hearing N is pivoted to its support at n, and it has a curved slotln coperating with a stud 'a2 permitting the bearing i to have an adjustment about the pivot n. The bearing N? is adapted to slide in a bed plate n3 in order to give it a slight movement transverse to the shafts K and N so as to withdraw the friction' pulley M from the pulle L, or to place it 1n contact therewith. The shaft N I carries a pulley N3 belted to a pulley Nl onv i the driving shaft l).

'lhe logs, as they emerge from the pond, are conveyed through a trough O to a table P which holds the logs while they are being barked. `After the logs are barked, they are carried .by the chain through the troughO to their destination. The table'. P is provided with sup orting brackets P., which are firmly attache to the front of the housing-C, and it is formed with wings P2 to which the ends of the troughs O, O are secured. It has a groove' or recess P3 through which the chain travels and it carries a shaftQ provided with spur wheels Q which assist in turning the log during the cutting o eration.

As in other machines of this class, provide a stop R against which one end of the log is forced duringA the cutting. o eration and which prevents the log lfrom eing moved endwise while being cut, but permits it to freely rotate. This stop, as shown, is in the vform .of a ball or sphere carried by the vertical arm 1 of a khorizontal bar R mounted to nected to a cross bar 'R3 of the table at r2. i

By means of 'this lever, the stop may be adi'usted to accommodate logs of different engths', and it maybe held in its adjusted posltion by detent mechanism R4.

The spur wheels S are similar to those shown in my patent above mentioned, and perform a similar function, that is. to say, they serve to move the log into the path of the knives, ress it against the" knives and rotate it Whilb being cut. These spurwheels are carried by a horizontal shaft s mounted in a frame S loosely supported on a horizontal shaft S2 above the cutter. The shaft s has rigidly secured to it aspur wheel or pinion s2 traversed lby an endless chain Sa gearing with a sprocket pinion s3 ri idly secured to the shaft S2. As the shaft S2 is rotated, the spur wheels are revolved. The shaft S2 is geared to the shaft Q by meansof a belt Q2, inthe manner indicated .in Fig.y 3, and

the shaft S2 is driven by the mechanism illustrated particularly in Fig. 5, where it will be seen, the shaft carries a friction disk i S4 engaging a friction pinion S5 carried by a shaft Ss which `is connected by means of a belt S7 and suitable pulleys to the driving shaft D. Theshaft S is capable of a slight endwise movement for the purpose of placing the friction pinion into and'out ofengage- It is norspring SE interposed between the rear bearing and a collar S10 attached to said shaft., The shaft is moved rearwards to cause the.

disengagement of the friction devices by means of a forked lever S11 connected by means of a vertical rod s with a bell crank lever' S7 in turn connected by a rod sa with another bell crank lever s at the front of the machine which bell crank lever is' connected by a vertical rod .91 with an operating lever s provided with detent mechanism s. The mechanism just described is shown most clearly in Figs. 6 and 8. By properly operating the levers1l with its detent mechanism 81.2, the fription devices may be engaged and disengaged to cause the 4rotation or the stoppag of the shaft S2.

The frame S .herein beforereferred to, is connected byineans of a rodTWith a bell shaft` S2 and connectedby means of a link T2 lwith the piston Krod T3 'which' operates in a lcylinder T4 to which steam, air orother suitable motive fluid is supplied. The rod T extends loosely through the fo 'ardly projecting portion of the bell cran lever T and carries nuts t on its upper endwhich limit its downward movement. -The lower end of the rod is connected to a yoke T5 forming part of the frame S', `and between this yoke and theforward end ofthe bell wards and forwards and resists their upward movement away from the log. In" this way a yielding pressure is exertedl on the log while it is being barked and enables the log to accommodate itself to the, cutter whatever be its irregularities in shape or7 formation.

It will be observed, by reference to Fig. 1, that when the disk cutter is rotated in the ,direction indicated by the arrow, the knives B act on the right hand end of the log in such manner as to tend to raise' this end of the log, and this has been found in practice to cause an irregularcutting of the log not only causing all the bark to be removed, but also av large portion of the good wood. to prevent this, I have devised a pressure device which, while holding down that end of the log which tends to rise, permits it to freely rotate and insures a uniform barking operation. For this purpose I provide a pressure wheel U freely pivoted at`the lower` end of a vertically moving frame U through which the .shaft Q extends and by which at its lower end it is guided and. which is also guided by a stub shaft U"z carried by a brackqet U3 mounted on the platform U4 at the top of the housing C. The lower end of the frame U is connected by a rope or other similar flexible connection U5 with a lever U6 pivoted at u'to the platform U and U8 forming the lower rear end of the bell vcrank lever T', the arrangement ybeing such that when the bell crank lever is operated to lower the spur wheels, S, the pressure crank levbl; Il", 'pivotally mounted on the crank lever T is interposed a spring .T r which tends to force the spur wheels down-A In order` connected by an arm U7 with the cross head Wheel U is lowered and caused to rest on the top of the log near one end,in the marmer indicated in Figs.. 1 and 4., The weight of the 'pressure wheel and its frame is sufficient to hold it in its lowered position and to prevent the log from rising unduly, but the pressure wheel and its frame will-rise should soeces C, preferably midway between the ends of the table. It is beveled at its upper end v and at its lower end it is connected by a lever V with a shaft V 2 mounted in bearings below the central portion of the table and carrying an operatinghandle V3, which'is connected by a vertical rod V4 with a bell crank lever V5, in turn connected by a rod V*1 with a bell crank lever V7, through the rearward horizontal arm of which extends vvertically a rod V8 connected at its upper end to a bell crank lever V9 in turn connected by a link V10 with the lever U11. A spring v moves the kicker downward. The shaft V2 is, as before stated, provided with/a han- 'dle V3 by means of which the kicker may be operated in the manner herein after eX- plained. As indicated most clearly in Fig. 31, the connection between the handle V3 and the rod V'1 is-adjustable. lt will be observed that the upper end of the rod V4 is formed with a head V11 having two notches v1", @11 with which is adapted to engage a latch or detent V12. As indicated in Fig. 3, the parts are in condition for automatic operation, but should it be desired at any time to throw the kicker out of operation, this may be done by placing the latch V12 in the upper notch 121. When the latch V12 is placed in the upper notch v1 the kicker will,l

of course, be depressed to a lower position than it ever at any other time assumes, and when the mechanism is operated, the kicker will never rise to such an extent as to prevent the log from being held by hand against the cutters when thespur wheels S are held in an elevated position. operation is sometimes necessary when logs of abnormal forni are encountered.' The adjustable bearing N2 hereinbefore referred to, is connected by means of a rod y to a bell crank lever' Z which is pivotally connected with the vertical rod V8, hereinbefore rcferred to. A collar Z is attached to the rod Vs just above the bell crank lever V7 and it is so arranged that when the rod VS is.

moved downwards and the bell crank lever V 7 is in the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3, said bell crank lever V7 and the devices connected therewith will cause the kicker V to be forced suddenly upwards to move the barked log away from the cutters onto the feed chain. This 4mechanism is so arranged that whenever the spur wheels S are raised, the kicker is elevated and the friction wheels L and-M are made to engage and thus cause the feed chain H to move forwards and feed a fresh log to the table and convey the barked log away, and when the spur wheels This hand S are depressed, the kicker is withdrawn and the friction wheels L and M are separated and stop the chain while a log is being barked.

The valve mechanism for the fluid pressure operating devices is controlled by a lever W provided with detent mechanism w and connected by a vertical rod W with a bell crank lever VV2 connected by a horizont-al rod W3 with a bell crank lever Vi in turn connected by a vertical rod VV5 with a bell crank lever VV connected by a rodW7 with thevalve mechanism.

In order that the chain H may be started or stopped at will independently of the raising and lowering of the spur Wheels S, I have mounted the shaft N in an eccentric N10 surrounded by an eccentric stra p N11 which is secured to the eccentric by a screw bolt N12. The eccentric strap has an arm N13, to the outer end of which is-connected a rod N1'1 connected to an arm N15 on ahorizontal shaft N11 having an arm N17 connected by a rod N18 with a bell crank lever N11 t which is connected a rod Y jointed to a handle Y* at the front of the machine. By operating this lever the shaft N may be so moved as to place 'the friction wheel M in contact with the wheel L or remove it therefrom without sliding the bearing N2, or in any way interfering with the connections between this bearing and the operating rod V8, that is to say, the chain H is under perfect control. It may be started or stopped at will whether the spur wheels be in operation or not, or whether they be in their raised or their lowered positions.

The construction of the mechanism illustrated has now been described and the method of operation has beenreferred to, but the operation more specifically is as ,follows z-The logs to be barkedmay be conveyed either from a pond, a saw mill, or other suitable source of supply. If conveyed from a pond, as illustrated,l the endless carrier chain is set into operation by means of the lever Ywhich7 through its connections before described, will bring the friction wheel M into frictional engagement with the wheel L, thus causing the chain to move and it will convey the logs to the table P in suitable suc- -moved from the position shown in Fig. 3 to l that shown in Fig. 4. At the same time the pressure wheel U will be lowered onto that endv of the log which tends to rise. The log is rotated not only by the spur wheels S, but also by the spur .wheels Q', in the'1nanner before described, and the rotation of the log continues' until the bark has been removed. In the act of operating the valve mechanism to lower the spur wheels,A the 'the friction disk S4.

chain is stopped, so as to prevent other logs .from interfering, by means of the connec' tions of the rod Vs with the adjustable bearing N2, before described, but as soon as vthe log has been'properly barked, yby'reversing the lever W, e spur wheelsand pressure wheel will be raised and at the Sametime, the friction wheel M will be made to 'engage the wheel L and the chain will be started again and will carry the barked .log to its destination. The kickeris lowered before an unbarked log arrives on the'table. by means of the lever V3, or by its own weight and the spring and it is automatically'raised to move a lo from the cutter tothe table, as beforeexplamed. If during the process of cutting the bark from the log, knotty portions or seams are encountered which are difficult to deal with, and it is desired to stop the rotation of the log by thespur wheels without removing the Ipressure of the spur wheels from the log, t is' mayl be done bv y means of the lever S12, which, through the connections before described, will cause the friction' pinion S5 to be withdrawn from In. this way, it will be readilv understood, the rotation of the spur wheels S and Q will be stopped, permitting that some of the -improvements herein shown and described may be embodied in a machine operating in the automatic manner described 1n my aforesaid patent, and may also be embodied in machinesdil'ering in some features of construction from that herein/shown.

I claim as my invention: 1. In a rossing machine, the combination of a rotary cutter, devices on which the log is supported while being cut, means for rotating these supporting devices, a stop for pre` venting endwise movement of the log during the cutting operation, means acting on the.

' upper front portion of the log for pressing it the log against the cutter and for rotating it while being cut, means lfor raising and lowering said rotating means, devices for acting on the top of the log at one side of said rotating means and near one end of the log to prevent from rising during the cutting operas' tion, and means for raising and ylowering said lastl mentioned devices.

2. Ina rossing machine,- the combination of a rotary cutter, a support for the log while being cut, means for pressing the log against the cutter and for rotating it, mechanism for bringing'the log rotating and pressing means into engagement with the log and for withdrawing it therefrom, and devices o' erating on the top of the log near one en to prevent this end from rising during thecutting operation which are coincidentlywith the log turning and pressing means moved into and out of engagement with the log.

3. In a rossing machine, the combination of 'a rotary cutter, means for supporting' a log while being cut, rotary spur wheels adapted to press the log against the cutter and to rotate it during the cutting operation, means for bringing the spur wheels into and out of engagement with the log and for with drawin them therefrom, a ressure wheel adaptedT to operate on one en of the log and prevent this end from rising during the cutting operation, and means for raisin and, lowering said pressure wheel coinci ently with the corresponding movements of the spur wheels.

4. In a rossing machine7 the combination with'a rotary cutter, of a support for the' log while 'being cut, means for pressing the' log against the cutter and for rotating'it during the cutting operation, and a kicker operating between the cutter and the log for moving the log away fromthe cutter after it has been barked.` i

5. In a rossing machine, the combination of a rotary cutter,'a support for the log,

means for pressing the log against the c'utter and for rotating it duringthe cutting operation, a kicker operating between' the log and the cutter, and mechanism operating to ac.-

\tuate the kicker immediately after the log ressing and from the log.

6. In a rossing machine, the combination lturning means are withdrawn of a rotary cutter,'a support for thel log,A

means for pressing the log against the cutter and for rotating itwhile being cut, power mechanism for bringing the log turning and ressing means into engagement with the og and for withdrawing it therefrom, a kicker operating between the log and the -cutter, and connections between the kicker and the lo turning and pressing means. whereby wen "i the latter are withdrawn from the log the kicker is actuated the log away from the cutter. l

7`. Ina rossing machine, the combination with a rotary cutter, -of a support for the log while being cut,y means for pressin the log against the .cutter and for rotatingit during the cutting operation, va kicker operating between the-cutter and the log for moving the log away from the'cutter after it has been barked, means for automatically thus operating the ykickerafter the log-pressing ,means have been with'drawn and devices whereby the automatic operation of the kickermay be suspended.

8.111 a rossing machine, the combination ics to move with a rotary cutter, of a support for the log while being out, spur wheels for pressing the log against the cutter and for rotating it during the cutting operation, means for raising and lowering the spur Wheels, a kicker operating between the cutter and the 10g for moving the 10g away from the cutter after it has been barked and the spur wheels have been raised, means actuated by the mechanism for raising and lowering the spur wheels for thus operating the kicker, and devices whereby such operation of the kicker may be suspended.

9. In a rossing machine, the combination of `a cutter, a support'for'the log while being out, means for pressing the log against the cutter and for rotating it, mechanism for bringing the log rotating and pressing means into engagement with the 10g and for Withdrawing it therefrom; a feed chain or log carrier for conveying logs to and from the cutter, means for causing the feed chain to stop when the log-pressing means are brought into engagement With the 10g and to start when the lieg-pressingmeans are Withdrawn from engagement therewith, and independent means for starting and stopping the feed chain Whatever be the position of the 10g-pressing and turning means.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name.

GEORGE S. VITHAM, JR. 

